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Tri Star color question....

OK, first off, I am far too compulsive to have found the Tom Bihn luggage in my researches and not actually buy something! I am also glad to see that there is a community of equally compulsive people on the forum (meant in a complimentary way!)

So, after far too much research and waffling a tiny little bit over the Air Boss I have officially informed my wife that a Tri-Star would be the perfect birthday present. She is WAY better than I deserve so I will likely be the proud owner of my first (but likely not last ) TB bag very soon.

My question has to do with internal color. I really like the Crimson (no one will mistake my bag for theirs in the overhead) but none of the pictures show what the steel interior looks like...

So, if anyone has one, does the steel interior have enough contrast to keep from losing stuff inside the bag?

Wish it had the Solar lining

I'm awaiting my backordered TriStar. Personally, I really prefer the bright, high contrast interiors to the more restrained ones. I have a Briggs & Riley bag with a bright orange interior that I like a lot, so I when I picked the TriStar bag I wanted one with the Solar interior, which meant the Indigo/Solar. Sadly, I was told it was backordered 4-6 weeks, so I'm being patient as the grey is not for me.

Crimson is a beautiful looking color, and I would have had a much more difficult time deciding if it had had the Solar interior.

The Gear Diary pages show both shots of the interior of the Tri-Star in Crimson/Steel and some of the packing cubes in Solar Dyneema. My Tri-Star is in Indigo/Solar, but my Western Flyer is Crimson/Steel, and so is my Aeronaut. While I don't think you'll have difficulty losing things in the bag, because the steel Dyneema is patterned, I have to say that I do love the contrast of the Solar Dyneema. One suggestion: I really recommend using the packing cubes. They're super versatile, can be transferred into other bags for additional use, and make it possible to pack in even more stuff than you would have believed. In other words, they make a great experience even better. My packing cubes are a mixture of colors, with some in Steel and some in Solar. I also use them with a modified bundle wrap. Why not get some packing cubes in Solar?

Here are a couple of old discussion threads discussing packing cubes and bags:

Thanks for all the input! I am definitely looking at some of the packing cubes...because I am an accessory fetishist!

Good suggestion on going with the colors on the cubes, but one of the ones I would defnitely want is the Packing Cube Backpack..which only comes in steel or iberian Maybe I will grab some of the smaller ones in solar...

I am also intrigued if anyone has used the Side Effect for double duty, to do both internal organization and to be used as a carry about. I have sort of an Alton Brown fixation on multi-functionality.

I have the Crimson/Steel Tri-Star. It was the only colour available when I ordered, and I had an immediate need for travel so I couldn't wait for the next batch. I was pleasantly surprised by the appearance of the Steel dyneema - it's a rich charcoal colour that positively shines in natural light. The white pattern in the material contrasts well with the darker colour.

That being said, I'd have preferred the other option that was offered at the time - Solar - because it does brighten up the interior of the bag. Not a problem for the front or rear sections, but the middle section and the front pockets could do with the extra contrast. The ultimate combination for me would have been Black/Solar.

I like the idea of colour-coding the packing cubes. For me, however, the Packing Cube Backpack looks perfect in Steel. I couldn't have handled one in Solar - that would have been simply too bright for my tastes.

jeffmac - The Iberian dyneema looks like it has a pretty high contrast interior. As I write this they are still available. The other thought is to minimize the loose junk by having a few organizer pouches attached to o-rings in strategic places in the Tri-Star.

Whatever your choice, the Tri-Star is an excellent bag for business travel or one-bagging in Europe. I used mine last year for 43 trips, loaded with laptop and clothes, and it hasn't missed a beat. Everything 'just works', and that's exactly what you need when you're on the road.

I have the black/iberian tri-star and am very happy with it. I have seen the solar and steel dyneema interiors on other tri-stars, and my advice is to not give too much thought to the inside colors, as they all look great, and choose the outside color you want. If you're worried about not being able to see stuff you might toss in the middle section, get a packing cube or organizer pouches -- my favorite is the clear quarter cube for that type stuff -- or the guardian dual function light, and clip it to an o-ring. The light is extremely handy. I keep mine clipped to my Little Swift, and have used it multiple times on planes while rummaging around, to retrieve a toy mouse under the sofa, and I used it just yesterday when I dropped something behind my desk at work and couldn't see to find it. Wonderful little thing.